Distance Education at the University of Ottawa

Distance education courses offered at the University of Ottawa are delivered in one of three ways, generally according to the program of study, and depending on resources available at the delivery site. Not all sites are equipped in the same way and not all courses are offered at every centre.

Live, interactive courses delivered via audio or video conferencing

These courses are taught in a specialized classroom on campus and broadcast live to other classrooms in several cities in Canada and around the world. They are made up of the following characteristics:

Students can interact in real time with the professor: cameras and microphones transmit sound and pictures between the various classrooms.

The professor uses an electronic whiteboard linked through the Internet to the other classrooms to present lecture material. Courses are offered only in sites equipped to handle them.

Sites vary according to the program of study and to demand in a particular area.

Audio conference courses with a Web component

Some courses are offered via live audio conference with support material available online. This type of delivery allows more students to enroll in the courses, which can even be taken from home. They are made up of the following characteristics:

The students can hear and talk to the professor in real time.

Students must have basic computer skills and access to a computer with Internet and a telephone line separate from their Internet connection. This delivery method is used by the Faculty of Health Sciences, the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies and the Faculty of Education.

Online (Internet-based) courses

These courses are offered completely online. They are made up of the following characteristics:

Students must have basic computer skills and access to a computer and the Internet.

Students may have to travel to campus for course-related activities for some courses. This t delivery method is used by the Faculty of Health Sciences, the School of Graduate Studies and the Faculty of Education.

All these courses have some form of Web component, available on the University of Ottawa’s Virtual Campus.